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Fellside OB is water tight


Fellside

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Hi

I have been working on the Fellside Observatory on and off since last July. As I work most of the summer I knew it meant that it would not get anyware near  finished until well into the winter. Since Christmas it has been a battle with the weather so progress has been slow. Anyway my brother in law came up last week and said it would be water tight when he left.

So we got the ROR framed up and rolling very smoothly. The rest of the cladding was fitted to fixed and rolling roofs. Two doors fitted and all was water proof.

There is just the rest of the flashing to be fitted to the ROR, guttering over the door  and it is finished externally.

Oh and we managed to break a battery Bosch SDS drill while drilling the concrete pier base for the eight holding studs. Pier is now fitted temporarily in place.

Many thanks to RayD for the pier drawing.

Fellside is heavily influenced (copied) by the Northern Sky Observatory built by r3i (my roof is flat)

Thanks to both and all the others who have posted there thoughts on observatory builds. I have tried to cherry pick the best ideas.

There are plenty of other pictures if anyone is interested:smiley:

Graham

ROR Closed

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ROR Open

IMG_20180219_131605.thumb.JPG.45c98128158c6d94299fade22c7cd484.JPG

 

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20 minutes ago, sloz1664 said:

That looks like a well thought, well built and robust ROR Obsy. I bet you cannot wait to use it in earnest.

Steve

Robust, yes, It gets very windy where we are. I also wanted low maintenance, no warping timber and re coating every year.

Yes I am looking forward getting everything up and running. I have a GSO RC10 and Mesu 200 ready to mount on the pier. There is a lot of work to do inside before I get to that point. I am planning to run the ob with Linux/INDI but there is a problem/delay with the Mesu INDI driver, not a problem at the moment as I am not ready to go live. I can see this turning into a problem though.

Graham

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GSO RC10 and Mesu 200 very nice indeed. Which camera are you going to strap to the back of the RC10? I've got my obsy running well  semi automated. I need to motorise the shutter to fully automate, unfortunately this requires a major rework of the whole shutter. I will, at some stage investigate linux control but as I have fine tuned the automation under Win 7. I'll leave it for the time being :icon_biggrin:

How are you going to drive and automate the ROR?

Steve

 

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1 hour ago, sloz1664 said:

GSO RC10 and Mesu 200 very nice indeed. Which camera are you going to strap to the back of the RC10? I've got my obsy running well  semi automated. I need to motorise the shutter to fully automate, unfortunately this requires a major rework of the whole shutter. I will, at some stage investigate linux control but as I have fine tuned the automation under Win 7. I'll leave it for the time being :icon_biggrin:

How are you going to drive and automate the ROR?

Steve

 

Steve

Camera is an Atik 383L Plus Mono to start with. Lodestar X2 on OAG. There are RC10 owners using the New CMOS chipped cameras. The pixel size is to small if you stick to what are the norms but they may be worth a try.

Once I have the setup running and have checked the collimation I have a few mods to do on the scope.

ROR will use the method shown by Wayne11. Chain and Windscreen wiper motor. I have all the kit but that is a way off at the moment.

Graham

 

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Its been a dry but very cold week. Made a bit of progress fitting a rubber seal to the far end of the ROR. I`m not that happy with it as it will stop water penetration but makes it hard to open until the rubber flips over the seal. At the moment the effort involved will be a little to much for the electric roof opener. I will return to this later.

Pier is now aligned and level. Fabricators quick paint job was getting damaged by the slightest touch so its had a quick rub down and a brushed coat of Grey primer. I will spray it black when there is a warm day.

Anyway I could not resist today and carried the very heavy mount down the OB and tried to fit it on the pier. The hole in the center of the mount was clogged with paint to stop it sliding down the thread. A few rocks back and forth and it is on:hello2:. Milestone . After a few pictures and some measurements it was removed back to its safe hidy-hole for a few more weeks.

IMG_20180225_154618.thumb.JPG.d0b78158cde5b3baa6d707597484af70.JPG

The coming week should see Warm room wall insulation, wall covering, and maybe get the consumer unit wired and powered up.

Graham

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Glad to see someone else has used the galvanised, coated sheet metal approach for construction. I can vouch that it is a very strong construction for exposed sites (my obsy has been standing since 2011). Although I did opt for a dark green colour to help blend in with the landscape!

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1 hour ago, laser_jock99 said:

Glad to see someone else has used the galvanised, coated sheet metal approach for construction. I can vouch that it is a very strong construction for exposed sites (my obsy has been standing since 2011). Although I did opt for a dark green colour to help blend in with the landscape!

 

Hi

It can get very windy here and I wanted a low maintenance covering. No warping or re coating with preservative every year. Long lived farm buildings use the same material.The underlying structure is a 2x4 wooden framework. I found it quite satisfy to put together with screws and an impact driver. To keep the cost under control I have used painted sheets rather than the more expensive PVC coated ones. We will see if that is a false economy. I also went with the sheets coated on the underside with an anti drip/condensation covering. My son say all observatories should be white. So we have compromised on Goose Wing Grey. (almost white).

Graham

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have made quit good progress in the last two weeks considering the delays due to snow. (it is snowing again tonight)

Externally the guttering is fitted but no downpipe or soak away as yet as the ground is to hard or that is what I have been telling myself:smiley:

Two walls insulated and internal cladding. No colour yet, wife keeps telling me its "only a shed" so not to bother getting it perfect.

Desk constructed. It a little over engineered but I thought I had better use up some of the leftover timber.

Consumer unit fitted, Two data cables commissioned. Speed is good 90 Meters from the house.

I made a decision that I would use a dado type trunking then only the minimum wiring is external to that. At the moment there is a two way switch next to the door for the 4 foot LED light and a double socket for power supplies under the desktop. There is one double socket and a four foot LED light in the scope room.

IMG_20180313_104519.thumb.JPG.5432fa93bf7705acfcc96530b3fac5da.JPG

Desk from 3 x 2 and a lot of screws.

IMG_20180316_171033.JPG.f849b389cd977f8e9b522b851d634222.JPG

Lighting switches, consumer unit, Dado trunking, five double sockets available in warm room, two Ethernet ports. And two ducts running under the floor to the pier.

I keep telling myself, not long now:smiley:

Graham

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Looking good. Five double sockets? I thought 12 would be enough- I was wrong...........

Currently plugged if I'm running both piers:

1) 12V PSU - powers both EQ6's

2) 12V PSU- powers 4 dew heaters

3) Desk Lamp (bright one)

4) Desktop PC1 - autoguider for inner pier

5) Monitor for above

6) Desktop PC1 - autoguider for outer pier

7) Monitor for above

8) PSU for DSLR (inner pier)

9) PSU for DSLR (inner pier)

10) Desk Lamp (dim one)

11) Hairdryer - for drying optics

12) Amplifer

13) CD player

14) Tape deck

and probably some others I've forgoten.

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7 minutes ago, laser_jock99 said:

Looking good. Five double sockets? I thought 12 would be enough- I was wrong...........

There is another the other side of the wall now. There is a SWA cable going across to a box at the base of the pier. There will be a double in there.

I could fill all that space between the sockets, but I think that would be overkill. We`ll see:smiley:

Long days at the moment, almost looking forward to going to work in the summer!! no I lied.

Graham

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

After a short break from the OB (6 days work) Externally there are a few small jobs to do and thats it. Internally again not a lot to do, Ceiling is just insulation at the moment, this will be paneled over when I have time. Motorized ROR to do, I have all the parts but I need a few bits sorting out on a lathe, I`m thinking about that.

To start with I have moved in the image processing Games PC. This has all the software to get the mount up and running loaded. A mini PC will follow when things are running reliably and remote operation can start.

Because there is no way to see a terrestrial target when the scope is mounted on the pier I set everything up outside. The RC10 has spacers that are used to space the equipment away from the back plate, But which one or how many. Got all setup on a old Workmate:smiley: Popped in a diagonal and an eye piece and went straight to focus with one 25mm spacer. Moved on to setting up the final imaging train. Struggled a bit and did`nt get to focus on the main camera let alone the OAG. Then it started to rain and had to move inside real quick. 

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Got everything setup on the pier and it all looked good. Last night I went with just the Lobestar to simplify things while setting the polar alignment. All sorted using PHD2 but I was not impressed by the Mesu method of locking and moving the the axis. Steel knurled wheels wore through my finger and thumb:hmh:. Should`nt have had things locked so tight. Anyway the night raced by and I packed up about 4AM. I haven't been out all night for a long time (with a telescope) :icon_biggrin: Well worth all the work to get this far.

 

IMG_20180411_144325.thumb.JPG.af3324d15cb7116ec148f8dc328baf45.JPG

 

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  • 2 months later...

Hi

I am not sure how a member is able to ask a question directly of the member who posts an entry. I am trying to see more of the pictures offered on the Fellside Obsey post. I am interested is seeing the roof structure, rolling gear and weather proofing to try and glean some ideas for how i can complete my own structure, roof wise.

Thanks

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PM is for personal contact but in cases like these it's better to just post a question in the thread as others may be interested in the answer.

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Newstargazer01

Here are a few more pictures of the ROR.

I am just working out how to stop the roof lifting off if the roof closes and the clamps are not on.

Prism decides its to windy to continue imaging and closes the roof. Wind gets stronger. No clams and I in bed? 

I friend is making up some parts. Hopefully they will be fitted before the winter.

ROR is a fairly simple structure using 50 x 100 Tantalized timber and plenty of screws. The corrugated steel  sheet adds a lot of strength and rigidity to the structure when it is screwed on. The whole structure is rap`d in a breathable membrane fabric to help with condensation and as a finale defense against wind/drafts and water leaks. There is a small slope to the ROR roof so that water runs off onto the fixed roof and then into the end gutter. If you live in a very wind spot just add more longer screws to hold the sheets on.

V rails and 6 wheels from FH Brundle

http://www.fhbrundle.co.uk/groups/13C__Sliding_Gate

http://www.fhbrundle.co.uk/products/0515096__T_Wheel_120x16mm_With_Internal_Support_Max_300_Kgs_V_Groove

http://www.fhbrundle.co.uk/products/0587604000__3_metre_Track_for_V_Grooved_Wheels_in_galvanised_steel

ROR1.JPG.2cf23eaa09bfba4af816f836a60b48bd.JPGROR2.JPG.7428ab067b4e051609133c8e04a5a7d0.JPGROR3.JPG.3350dbcb8024d8a7254871124d381c56.JPGROR4.JPG.9f768ab2aca956407459dd951ef9452e.JPGROR5.JPG.972c7f64de146af606ace59f55ee2c17.JPG

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My plan, which is yet to be anywhere near execution, is that the roof will have pins that pass through holes in steel plates as the roof closes, so once in a closed position the roof cannot lift.  The pins will also have a hole through the end allowing another smaller pin or something similar to be passed through so that if I'm away I can fix the roof closed.

My inspiration was the pins used to locate equipment on a 3-point linkage for a tractor.  Hopefully this link will point to my post explaining the plan:

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/315082-jamesfs-observatory-build/?page=2&tab=comments#comment-3448402

James

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James

By coincidence I spoted the pin sticking out of the rear wall on Sara's build as well. What a good idear The other end of my ROR will have a piece of steel plate on the moving part and right angle piece on the fixed part. Moving plate passes under fixed part and is trapped and cannot rise up. I will post some pictures when its done.

You have a lathe at home. I wished I had a lathe? Why are you thinking of buying anything?

I have work now for two weeks so everything stops.

Graham

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